Dance With Me Tonight
by TT-5
Summary: 1923 - With their 5th anniversary just around the corner Christopher and Rosalind are looking forward to a few nights alone something that their 4 year old son doesn't quite understand


1923

It was their fifth wedding anniversary on Friday and Detective Sergeant Christopher Foyle was smiling as he got off the phone. Alice and Charles had agreed to take Andrew for the weekend, which meant for the first time in almost four years he and Rosalind would have two nights to themselves.

Alice would come down on the train on Friday morning to collect Andrew and she and Charles would drive him back on Sunday giving them Friday night and all of Saturday to act like newlyweds again.

He had made them a reservation at one of the fancier restaurants in town and promised Rosalind that they would go dancing after dinner. It wasn't as if they never went out anymore but those occasions were few and far between and often linked to work. But not this time, this would be just the two of them and Foyle hoped it would be a chance for him to show Rosalind how much he appreciated all she did everyday.

He helped out where he could but it was Rose who cooked, cleaned and cared for their son day in and day out. He knew it wasn't easy and he had been carefully saving part of his pay for almost a year to make their anniversary extra special.

Still smiling to himself he turned back to the work on his desk, he still had reports to finish before he could go home and Rose hated it when he was late for supper.

The days leading up to Friday passed pleasantly right up until Thursday night; they had told Andrew that he would be going to stay with his aunt and uncle for a few nights but hadn't really told him why.

The boy was only 4 years old and it didn't seem necessary, not to mention they didn't think he'd really understand. He had been excited when they told him on Monday but by Thursday it was clear that something had changed.

He had been oddly out of sorts all day and Foyle was worried he was starting to get ill; he loved his son dearly but the idea of spending their weekend nursing a sick little boy instead of celebrating their anniversary was hardly appealing.

So when Andrew stomped his foot, crossed his arms and announced he "Wouldn't!" In response to Rose's request that he go upstairs and choose which toys he wanted to take with him, Foyle sighed and crossed to his son placing a gentle hand on the back of his neck, expecting to find him feverish.

He wasn't which was a relief but it didn't explain why he was behaving this way. "Andrew that's no way to speak to your mother." Foyle said firmly.

His son scowled at him, "Don't care!"

"Well you ought to; apologize to your mother and then go upstairs and do as your told."

"Christopher…" Rosalind began but Foyle shook his head. "No Rose he's old enough to know better. Andrew?"

"You don't care! You just want me to go away so you can have a party wif out me!" With this startling statement Andrew fled up the stairs leaving his parents to stare after him in shock.

"Where on earth did he hear about that?" Foyle wondered aloud, turning to look at Rosalind. Her expression told him that she was just as surprised as he was and he sighed, "Right well I'll go talk to him."

She moved to come with him but he shook his head, "Let me have a go Rose, you know talk about it man-to-man."

She hesitated, "You mustn't be too hard on him Christopher, he's only a little boy."

Foyle nodded and offered her a reassuring smile, "Don't worry love, I'm just going to talk to him. Would you mind heating up some milk? A cup of cocoa might help calm him down before bed." Rosalind nodded and headed to the kitchen.

Andrew's bedroom door was open and there was muffled crying coming from the closet, Foyle frowned and tapped on the closet door. "Andrew?"

Silence or as close to silence as a four year old could come. Foyle sighed and opened the door. Andrew sat curled in a ball in the far corner. "Andrew would you come out here please I'd like to speak to you."

"No!"

Foyle frowned but bit back his instinctive rebuke of his son's rudeness. As Rosalind had said he was really a very little boy who was clearly confused and upset. So after giving it a moment's thought he simply crawled into the closest and sat down next to his son.

The action surprised Andrew so much that he uncurled and looked up at his father. Foyle smiled down at him, "Where did you hear that mummy and I were going to have a party?" Foyle asked gently.

"Mummy said so!"

"When?"

"When she was talk wif Mrs. Rivers. She said it would be nice to be just the two of you and I know it's a party because she bought a pretty dress."

Foyle sighed, he had wondered if it was something like that. Children were often more observant than people realized and clearly Andrew was no exception to that rule.

"Can't I come to the party too?" Andrew asked looking pleadingly at his father.

Foyle hesitated, "Err not this time Andrew."

"But I want to dance wif Mummy."

"You did that just the other night, you and Mummy danced to the wireless after supper don't you remember?" Foyle certainly hadn't forgotten the sight of Rosalind dancing around the lounge with a laughing Andrew in her arms.

Andrew sniffed and buried his face in his father's side, "Not a party."

Foyle sighed and lifted his son on to his lap, "Doesn't have to be a party to count you know. Mummy and I dance in the lounge all the time and it's just as nice as dancing at a party."

Andrew shook his head "Want to dance wif Mummy at a party."

Foyle sighed again, "I'm sure you will Andrew when you're a bit older. Friday is a very special day for Mummy and I so we are having a party just for the two of us, not even Uncle Charles or Auntie Alice are coming."

"Why is it special?"

"It was the day Mummy and I got married."

Andrew looked confused, "You got married on Friday?"

Foyle chuckled and ruffled Andrew's hair lightly, "No Andrew we got married before you were born but Friday is the anniversary."

Andrew thought about this for a few minutes, "Does anniversary mean party?"

"Err more or less."

"I wasn't at the wedding so can't I be at the anniversary?"

"Maybe another time Andrew, after all Uncle Charles and Auntie Alice are looking forward to seeing you, they might even take you to the airfield." Andrew had recently become fascinated with airplanes and Foyle was hoping that the suggestion would distract him.

Andrew sniffed again, snuggling closer to his father, "But if I stayed wif you we could all go to the airfield."

"We can go to the airfield once you get back Andrew, besides you are going to have a lovely time visiting your uncle and aunt."

Andrew nodded, leaning his head against his father's shoulder as he began to play gently with his collar, "If I'm a good boy can we have a party when I come back?"

Foyle smiled down at his son, "We'll see." He glanced up and realized that Rose was standing in the doorway, tea tray in hand smiling fondly at them. "Look Mummy's brought us some cocoa."

Andrew looked up eagerly, clambering out of the closet and rushing over to his mother. Foyle followed more slowly, giving Rosalind a look that told her he would explain everything after Andrew was in bed.

By the time Andrew had finished his cocoa and biscuit he was snuggled in his mother's lap, practically asleep. Foyle smiled and gently ruffled his son's hair, "Come on Andrew time for bed."

"'m not tiwed" Andrew mumbled, eyes sliding closed again.

"Is that so?" Foyle asked as he gathered the sleepy little boy into his arms, "well that's alright."

While Rosalind took the tea tray back downstairs Foyle helped Andrew ready for bed and he was soon tucked in and fast asleep.

The next morning Andrew seemed to have recovered from his disappointment about 'the party' and was once again excited about seeing his aunt and uncle much to his parents relief.

Alice's train was due at 10am but Andrew was bouncing with excitement by the end of breakfast. Because he had his inspector's permission to come in a little late this morning Foyle suggested that he and Andrew take a walk hoping it would give Andrew a chance to run off a little of his boundless energy.

They both enjoyed the walk but it had done little to decrease Andrew's excitement and Rosalind had to hold his hand firmly to prevent him running all the way to the train station.

Andrew ran straight to his aunt as soon as she stepped of the train with a gleeful cry of "Auntie Alice!" leaving his smiling parents to follow in his wake.

"And Daddy and me went for a walk and we could see the seagulls fighting but Daddy didn't have to arrest them."

"Well it sounds like you've had quite the morning already." Alice replied, trying not to laugh at the idea of her brother-in-law arresting squabbling seagulls. "Hello Rosalind, Christopher."

"Alice it's good to see you, thank you again for taking Andrew."

"Our pleasure, truly, we don't get to see him nearly enough. Charles is so busy these days that we never seem to make it down to Hastings."

Rosalind nodded she knew that her brother had become increasingly busy at the admiralty in recent months. "Well we do appreciate you giving up your weekend for us."

"Not at all, we've been looking forward to it." Alice spoke sincerely and Rosalind nodded. She knew that Alice and Charles had hoped to have children of their own but fate seemed to have had different ideas. It was too bad and in many ways dreadfully sad but they appeared to have moved on and thrown themselves into other things, one of those being their role in Andrew's life.

"Auntie Alice?"

"Yes Andrew?"

"May we go to the airfield wif Uncle Charles?"

"If you like, I'm sure Uncle Charles would enjoy that too."

"Hooray! Oh look the engine's making clouds! Is that were the clouds in the sky come from Daddy?"

Foyle chuckled and picked his son up so he could see the engine more clearly, "No Andrew that's just steam from the engine, the clouds in the sky are made high up in the sky."

"Oh, when I'm grown up I'm going to fly up in my airplane and see clouds be made, maybe there are engines high in the sky that we can't see!"

Foyle laughed again at his boy's imagination kissing his forehead before he handed him to Rose "Be a good boy for your aunt and uncle Andrew, we'll see you in a few days."

Andrew frowned slightly and nuzzled into his mother's neck, "Miss you Mummy."

"I'll miss you too my darling boy but it's just two sleeps."

"Two sleeps is lots." Andrew murmured suddenly less sure about this turn of events.

Rose rubbed his back soothingly, "But you'll have such a good time Andrew, you'll get to see Uncle Charles and go to the airfield, you might even go and see the changing of the guard!"

"The men wif the big hats?"

Rosalind nodded, "Yes and you can tell Daddy and I all about it when you come home." Andrew was quiet for a few minutes and then the train whistle blew, causing him to jump slightly. "It's alright love, it's just the train saying it's time to go." Rose soothed.

"Yes come along Andrew, your Uncle Charles is going to meet us at the station."

Andrew gave his mother another kiss and then let himself be put down before wrapping his arms around his father's legs. "Miss you Daddy."

Foyle smiled and scooped his son up into his arms, "I'll miss you too Andrew." The train whistle blew again and Foyle passed Andrew up to his aunt who was already standing on the train. "Goodbye Andrew, be good."

"Bye-bye Mummy, bye-bye Daddy." Andrew called, waving as the train started to pull out of the station.

"I miss him already you know." Rosalind said once the train was out of sight.

Foyle smiled, "I know love but it's only two nights, besides I think we'll have some fun of our own."

He gave her a mischievous look and Rosalind slapped his arm lightly, "Christopher! Behave!" Foyle just smiled and offered her his arm as they made they way out of the station.

Friday evening was delightful; they had a lovely dinner and then danced late into the night returning home an hour or two after midnight. They then proceeded to spend the majority of Saturday in bed.

On Sunday they had a nice breakfast before church and then took a walk down by the beach before returning home for tea, wanting to make sure they were home when Charles, Alice and Andrew arrived.

Foyle was just clearing the last of the tea things off the table when he saw Charles' car pull up out front. He smiled and quickly headed to the kitchen placing the crockery in the sink before pulling Rosalind into a passionate kiss.

Rosalind smiled happily at him when they broke the kiss, "Not that I'm complaining but what brought that on?"

"Charles and Alice just pulled up, don't suppose I'll be able to kiss you like that in the kitchen for a while."

She nodded and kissed him quickly, "Thank you for this weekend Christopher it's been wonderful."

"No less than you deserve my love. Now we had better go and relieve your brother of our son." His tone was teasing but they were both eager to see Andrew, as much as they had enjoyed the time to themselves they had missed their little boy.

Foyle opened the door and with a happy cry of "DADDY!" Andrew launched himself at his father.

Foyle smiled and bent down to intercept the bundle of energy that was his son, "Hullo Andrew! Did you have a good time?"

He felt Andrew nod against his shoulder and pulled back to smile at his boy, "Yes but I missed you and Mummy."

"And we missed you. Were you a good boy?"

Andrew nodded again, "Yes and we went to the airfield and Uncle Charles' friend was there so I got to sit in a plane! I wasn't allowed to fly it in the air but I flyed it on the ground and then we went to look at Uncle Charles boat and it's really big. Mummy did you miss me?"

Rosalind smiled taking Andrew from Christopher and pulling him into a tight hug. "I missed you very much my darling boy but I'm glad that you had fun. Did you say thank you to Uncle Charles and Auntie Alice?"

"Yes and I said my prayers and brushed my teeth."

"I'm very proud of you Andrew. Did you see the changing of the guard?"

While Andrew launched into an explanation of everything that "the men wif the big hats" had done Foyle turned to the Howards who were standing smiling in the doorway. "Charles, Alice, do come in. Here Charles let me take that." He reached to take Andrew's small suitcase from his brother-in-law setting it on the floor by the stairs before moving to help Alice with her coat.

"Thank you Christopher, did you have a nice weekend?"

Foyle was about to answer when Charles chuckled from beside him, "I'm surprised you need to ask love, just look at the pair of them!"

"Charles really!"

Rosalind blushed but Foyle found himself laughing right along with his brother-in-law. It was true, both he and Rose were grinning like cats that had gotten into the cream. After taking a minute to compose himself he smiled at his sister-in-law, "Yes thank you Alice we had a wonderful time. I hope Andrew wasn't too much trouble?"

"Not at all, he was very well behaved. Wasn't he Charles?"

Charles nodded, "Yes he was. Amazing amount of energy though, not sure how you do it Christopher."

"Practice and scotch mostly. Speaking of which can I interest you in a glass?"

"We can't stay long so I'd better not, a cup of tea would be splendid though." Foyle nodded and headed to the kitchen to put on the kettle while Rosalind herded a still talking Andrew upstairs to wash his hands.

The Howards had only stayed for a little over an hour, wanting to make it back to London in time for supper. Andrew had quieted as tea wore on and after saying goodbye to his aunt and uncle had appeared at Foyle's side, book in hand asking if his father would read to him. "Uncle Charles read to me last night but it's not the same."

Foyle had happily agreed and Andrew was soon nestled in his lap listening contentedly to the familiar story and playing gently with his father's collar. Rosalind smiled at the sight of her two boys so happily engaged and taking her knitting went to join them on the settee.

Foyle glanced up as he felt her sit down beside them and gave her a loving smile. On the settee with him was everything he loved most. He didn't think he'd ever been happier and he couldn't resist dropping a soft kiss on Andrew's head as he paused to turn the page.

The End


End file.
